Anger Management, E Jiao and Huang Lian

In western medicine, anger management focuses on the patient’s psychological state when recommending treatment. In this way, allopathic medicine considers anger and other emotions to be a matter of the mind only.

Chinese medicine has a different perspective. When addressing anger and other negative emotional states, practitioners treat the body, as well as the mind.

The Heart and the Emotions in Chinese Medicine  

In Chinese medicine, when the heart’s function is disrupted, it may manifest with a large variety of symptoms. Many of these are related to “heat” in the heart – a type of pathology in Chinese medicine. Symptoms may include feeling hot, insomnia, thirst, restlessness, and irritability.

Other organs also play a major role in our emotions, including the liver and kidneys.

The link between the heart and kidney is of special note in Chinese medicine, as they are believed to balance each other. Traditionally, the heart has been considered the “fire” organ and the kidney the “water” organ for the roles they play in the body.

When either the heart or kidney is out of balance – either through disease, poor nourishment, or exhaustion – it results in a condition termed “heart and kidney” disharmony. This condition can lead to poor anger management.

How E Jiao and Huang Lian Are Used for Anger Management

E Jiao and Huang Lian are used in combination to treat heart and kidney disharmony. Most Chinese herbal formulations include herbs with similar traits. E Jiao and Huang Ling, though, are very different in composition and purpose.

E Jiao is used to fortify the body’s yin energy, which is responsible for creating the body’s structure. When used to treat heart and kidney disharmony, it is used to fortify the kidneys and improve their ability to distribute fluid throughout the body. This can bring the heart back into balance.

Huang Lian is a cold herb that is used to clear heat from the body. It’s also effective at removing “dampness,” another common pathology in Chinese medicine. When taken, Huang Lian goes to the heart and drains heat, directing it toward the kidneys and putting both organs back in balance.

If a patient’s anger has an underlying physiological cause, E Jiao and Huang Lian can address some of the most likely culprits.